EMMA'S SECRET

Bradford's novel continues the saga of the Harte family, begun with Emma Harte in A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE. On her deathbed Evan Hughes's grandmother tells her to go to London, where Emma Harte holds the key to her future. But Emma Harte has been dead for 30 years. In London, Evan turns up at a flagship store in Knightsbridge looking for a job. Everyone notices the resemblance between owner Paula O'Neill--Emma Hart's granddaughter--and the young American. When a cousin of Paula's is smitten with Emma, it becomes imperative to find out Evan's lineage. As Bradford lets the story unfold in the present and the past, Kate Reading divulges Emma's family secrets one by one in a soothing, languorous voice and soft accents. Reading performs each scene with practiced aplomb and lets the multifaceted story gradually reveal itself. Love, friendship, and family are the keys to the Hartes, their kin, and the past they guard so zealously. M.B.K. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 04/ JAN 05]